Implements recommendations from a national review of legislation governing exploration and development of offshore petroleum resources and its compliance with competition policy principles by amending the

Petroleum (Submerged Lands) Act 1967

to: impose a limit on renewals of exploration permits; and reduce compliance costs for the petroleum industry by reducing the number of reviews required, of the commerciality of a discovery held under a retention lease.

Introduced with the Offshore Petroleum (Safety Levies) Bill 2003, the bill amends the

Petroleum (Submerged Lands) Act 1967

to: establish a National Offshore Petroleum Safety Authority which will provide a national safety regulatory regime for Australia’s offshore petroleum industry in Commonwealth, State and Northern Territory coastal waters; ensure that the Commonwealth remittance to the States and the Northern Territory of annual fees collected in respect of titles does not include the goods and services tax component of the fees; move the procedures for petroleum data submission from the Act into regulations; and improve safety regulation and administration. Also contains a regulation-making power and transitional provisions.

Part of a package of three bills, the bill makes consequential amendments to 12 Acts, retrospectively, to give effect to certain Articles of the Timor Sea Treaty in relation to criminal jurisdiction, customs, employment regulation, migration, quarantine, income tax and fringe benefits tax. Also repeals the

Part of a package of three bills, the bill gives retrospective effect to the Timor Sea Treaty between Australia and East Timor, which provides a framework for the exploration, development and exploitation of the petroleum resources in the Joint Petroleum Development Area created by the Treaty. Also contains application and transitional provisions and a regulation-making power.